The Open Connectivity Foundation (OCF), a leading open Internet of Things (IoT) standards body, today at IFA 2018 in Berlin, Germany announce together with the appliance manufacturers, Electrolux, Haier, LG Electronics, and Samsung Electronics, a novel effort to advance interoperability within the IoT ecosystem and establish seamless and secure connected device experiences. In addition. OCF is introducing an enhanced public key infrastructure (PKI) security model and secure cloud management capabilities, further strengthening secure interoperability among the consortium's 400-plus member ecosystem.

The industry's lack of a comprehensive compatibility program coupled with the unbounded growth of IoT is widening the gap created by compatibility challenges and limits the full potential of IoT among consumer, enterprise and automotive users. With the introduction of an enhanced PKI security model and secure cloud management capabilities, OCF is committed to closing this gap, envisioning a highly secure and open interoperable device ecosystem in which manufacturers are working together to establish a unified standard for developers, end users and everyone in-between.

Furthermore, Electrolux, Haier, LG Electronics and Samsung Electronics endorse OCF as Diamond Members, as the leading IoT standard technology and certification program, spearheading OCF's mission to close the IoT compatibility gap and resolve the practical pain points experienced within the greater industry and OCF ecosystem, itself comprised of a range of IoT service and solutions providers, chip makers and device manufacturers from diverse markets including consumer electronics, enterprise, healthcare, home automation, industrial and wearables.

As industry leaders within the worldwide smart home devices market, which is forecasted to ship 549.5 million devices overall in 2018, according to the IDC Worldwide Quarterly Smart Home Device Tracker1, Electrolux, Haier, LG Electronics and Samsung Electronics are striving for offering a wave of interoperable OCF-Certified products and solutions in 2019. The vision is that this momentum will progress into 2020 and beyond in a second wave of OCF-Certified products headed by OCF's 400-member strong ecosystem, underpinning OCF's ongoing development of cutting-edge, open IoT compatibility standards, including the reference implementation code called IoTivity, hosted by the Linux Foundation.

"The support we have seen from Electrolux, Haier, LG Electronics and Samsung Electronics underscores the importance of OCF's vision for broad interoperability in a quickly expanding ecosystem of IoT services, devices and solutions," said Dr. Matthew Perry, Chairman of OCF. "We're excited to see that these companies are working to realize the full potential of IoT, delivering an IoT standard that the industry has long been asking for."

In addition, OCF is advancing the connected user experience with the addition of a PKI security model and cloud management capabilities, arming manufacturers, developers and the greater connected ecosystem with the tools they need to establish a secure, flexible and reliable end-user experience.

The cloud management capabilities enable a user to register multi-vendor devices to his/her account for cloud services and remotely monitor and control the devices, wherever they are, using a single mobile application. The addition of PKI to OCF's framework equips manufacturers with the ability to establish immutable, attestable and unique trust between OCF-Certified devices. Using a set of certificates to identify and authenticate the origin of a device, the opportunity for device fraud and other data risks are significantly diminished.

Through an authenticated portal incorporating PKI and cloud management capabilities, OCF offers users a single pane of glass view of all OCF-Certified IoT devices within their network and access to cloud-based services, such as home security and energy management, remotely and at the tips of their fingers.

"Security continues to be a top priority for manufacturers and developers alike, and the addition of PKI and cloud management capabilities into OCF's core framework builds upon the most critical piece of device interoperability â identity," said Brian Scriber, Principal Security Architect, CableLabs, Chair, Security Working Group, OCF. "OCF is actively making strides to bring a higher level of security to consumer electronics and establish a fortified connected ecosystem for end users and businesses alike."

The Open Connectivity Foundation is dedicated to ensuring secure interoperability for consumers, businesses and industries by delivering a standard communications platform, a bridging specification, an open source implementation and a certification program allowing devices to communicate regardless of form factor, operating system, service provider, transport technology or ecosystem. OCF and its Diamond Members believe that secure and reliable device discovery and connectivity is a foundational component to enable IoT. Learn more.

(1) IDC, "Worldwide Quarterly Smart Home Device Tracker," August 2018

Member Quotes:

"Electrolux strongly believes in the importance of secure interoperability between appliances, providing consumers with peace of mind to use products of various brands in their smart home ecosystem. The OCF is a key initiative to realize this vision and unlock the potential of the Internet of Things," said Jan Brockmann, Chief Operations Officer, Electrolux Group.

"Haier U+ is in full support of OCF's effort on delivering open and unified specifications, implementation and certification. OCF grows IoT market by enabling the multi-vendor interoperability. Haier U+ will take advantage of the mechanism offered by OCF bringing our customers better user experience", said Wenting Yu, COO, Haier U+.

"At LG, we are integrating AI into a diverse portfolio of everyday products in the home, on the road, and in the office," said I.P. Park, Chief Technology Officer, LG Electronics. "We're pleased to use OCF as a common industry standard of IoT for helping customers realize the benefits of a seamless and intelligent connected life."

"Samsung sees the OCF is the key to integrate current fragmented market and make various systems from multi-vendors interoperable," said Hyogun Lee, EVP and Head of Engineering, Samsung Electronics. "We are happy to collaborate with other OCF members as well as our partners to provide seamless and intelligent IoT experiences to consumers through the OCF."